Ebony & Ivory
by FallenFury13
Summary: Perseus, born via a heinous crime, is taken in and raised by the Hunt. Protected from society, he arrives in the modern age with 2000 years of memory with which to help accomplish the Great Prophecy, helped by a certain raven haired Huntress...But it's not all smooth sailing. AU retelling of Percy's life from before TLF through to TLO. Eventual Perzoe. My first fic!
1. An Unforgivable Crime

**A/N: So, this is my first attempt at writing a proper story, let alone a Fanfic. I'd just like to give a shout out to Anaklusmos14, who inspired me to write this fic. I find his stories incredible, and if you haven't checked them out yet, then I recommend that you do! And so without further ado…**

**Oh wait, just saying that all rights to the Percy Jackson world belong to Rick Riordan, who I'm obviously not. **

The crisp night wind stirred the autumn leaves on the ground, and as they were being thrown into the air, silver arrows sped from the depths of the forest and pinned them to the trees. Laughter trickled from the source of the arrows, deep, booming laughter as well as high tinkling giggles.

"Orion, you know I've hit more than you. Are you ever going to catch up to me?" teased a silver robed youth, around 13 years old. She had bright silver eyes with a slim, athletic figure, as well as a sharp face that seemed to scan the surrounding area, highlighting any potential threats.

"Milady Artemis, I could only ever hope to match one such as yourself in skill." replied a broad shouldered man, thickset with black hair hanging down across his face, and deep sea green eyes that penetrated the gloom of the woods.

Artemis laughed again, so happy that she had found a man worthy of her respect that she didn't notice that two presences watching the pair, both with very different emotions about the scene.

One, a beautiful girl with jet black hair and eyes that sparkled like obsidian, could hardly contain the rage she felt. Here, Lady Artemis, goddess of maidens was fraternizing with a MALE!? Did she not remember the pain that all males cause, the destruction of lives that followed them? Her own experience told her that Orion would soon show his true colours, after all, the man that had captured her heart had been hailed as the greatest hero to have walked the Earth, however, he would have died without her help. She gave up everything for him, friends, family and a home, and how did he repay her? Took her gift, tossed her aside like a piece of equipment that had served its purpose and, for his actions, was made a god. The injustice of this burned and fuelled her hatred of men, to the point where she joined the Hunters and came under the protection of the goddess that stood for all she believed in. The same goddess that was now breaking her own rules. Well she, Zoe Nightshade, was not going to stand for it! All she needed was evidence and a plan…

Meanwhile, the other girl watching the happy not-quite-a-couple was wistful and in despair. Why wasn't _she _the one that could capture the heart of such a brave, strong and handsome hero? She was pretty, a small elfin girl with silver eyes and white hair that glowed in the moonlight, and she was powerful, being a goddess and all that. But, as always, she was overlooked in favour of the Olympian, who shared the same domains and more besides. She had joined the Hunt so as to be seen as an equal to Artemis, unfortunately, her plan backfired and the two were compared more than ever. It was just so…unfair! Why shouldn't the name Achlois be remembered in the great adventures of the Hunt? Thinking this, she decided to break Artemis' heart by estranging her and Orion. A kiss and a cuddle would be all that was needed to reassert Artemis' distrust of men. Little did she know what was to transpire…

Whilst Artemis was blissfully unaware of the two, Orion noticed Achlois hiding behind a tree, and began to make some alterations to his plan. The obvious end goal was to become the immortal consort of Artemis, and then take her seat on the Olympian council. He felt as if that as he had gone to such work melting the ice that surrounded the Huntresses heart, he should have a little _fun_ with the eavesdropping goddess. He was broken out of his thoughts by Artemis.

"Alright, I'm tired now, I need my rest so I can kick your ass tomorrow."

Orion grinned, he knew that he could spend some time with Achlois now.

"Of course, Milady, I would not expect anything less. Goodnight."

Artemis ran off, back to the camp where she knew her Hunters would be.

Achlois turned to go, however, she felt a pressure on her shoulder, preventing her from leaving. She turned to find Orion looming over her, an evil smirk now on his face.

"Well then little goddess, shall we see what's under that robe?" he snarled.

And then her world went black.

Zoe turned, sickened by the man her mistress thought a friend. She knew that males could be greedy, arrogant and selfish, but this? This was horrifying! She needed to take action, and fast. But who could she turn to? Her bow had been taken from her for speaking out against him! Artemis was smitten with him, and wouldn't hear a word against him. Her other close friend, Achlois, was currently at the mercy of the vile pig. But there was one…she knew what would happen and hated herself for it, but this was a desperate situation. She distanced herself from the clearing so that Orion wouldn't see, then touched an amulet that hung around her neck. Instantly, golden light blinded her. She only opened her eyes when she heard his irritating voice:

"Hey beautiful. Does this mean you've reconsidered my offer?" Apollo said hopefully.

"Fat chance golden boy, I n-n-need your help." Said Zoe, forcing herself to admit it.

"Oh really?" Apollo was intrigued.

"Look at the clearing."

Apollo turned, observing the wicked son of Poseidon with the unconscious goddess. And he continued to stare, whilst trembling with rage at the thought of how that could have been his little sister. And still he stared, until…

SLAP! The sound resonated throughout the forest, but luckily Orion attributed it to a deer and continued his twisted _fun_.

"Will you get a hold of yourself?" Zoe seethed. "I know you cannot interfere due to the Ancient Laws, however, you _can_ turn others into animals, yes?"

"Well, yes, but how is that relevant?" Apollo whined, holding his red cheek.

"Turn Orion into an animal fool, and then get Artemis to hunt him!"

Apollo smiled at the brutality and simplicity of the plan. He had been meaning to punish Orion for a while, for daring to get close to his little sister, but this worked out just fine. Besides, he wanted Achlois for himself…

In a flash of golden light, Orion, who had risen from the limp form of Achlois, was turned into a giant boar.

"Isn't that Ares' speciality?" Zoe inquired.

"Meh, who cares, hopefully it'll irritate him. Now for the main event. ARTEMIS! A BOAR IS ATTACKING ACHLOIS!" Apollo bellowed.

Artemis sped through the trees like quicksilver, trying to aid her most trusted lieutenant and friend. She came upon the boar and released her arrows with such speed and ferocity that the boar's ribs were broken upon impact. At the boar's death, Orion was transformed back into his original state.

Artemis saw her brother and Zoe with grins on their faces, and would have attacked them had she not seen the state of her lieutenant's attire and how close Orion was to her.

"No…he wouldn't…he wouldn't dare…" sobbed Artemis, unable to deny it as the evidence was in front of her.

"Sis…I'm so sorry, but he wasn't the person you believed him to be."

"Shut up Apollo, you think I can't see that?! I'll have him thrown into Tartarus for this!"

"I have better idea." Apollo went over to Orion's body and spoke an incantation, before releasing his essence into the stars.

"You would HONOUR that filthy, vile, disgusti-" Artemis trailed off, as she could see what her brother had truly done. He had put Orion's greatest fear next to him in the sky, a scorpion, chasing him across the sky for eternity, his punishment clear to mortals and immortals alike.

She laughed, a broken laugh as she realized how close she had been to the man…

Achlois then stirred, drawing the concern of the trio.

"Milady…." she gasped.

"Achlois, I'm sorry, you can still be in the Hunt, you can still live with us, you can-" Achlois raised her hand, shutting off the torrent of words flowing from Artemis.

"I don't want to live." she said firmly. "The shame of what has happened would haunt me throughout my immortal life. I won't have my happy times of the Hunt marred by _him_. But please Artemis, promise me 3 things that are fully within your power. Swear upon the River Styx."

"Of course, I swear upon the River Styx to grant you the first three wishes within my power." burbled Artemis, distraught at losing her closest friend. Thunder boomed, sealing the deal.

"As my first wish, I wish that you, as the goddess of childbirth, allow me to give birth to the child now, and for you to raise them as part of the Hunt, where none of the Hunt will hurt them, regardless of gender."

"WHAT? YOU WANT TO KEEP THAT ABOMINA-"

"Secondly," said Achlois, cutting Artemis off "I wish for them to inherit my features, none of their fathers, and only my powers. Some of my goddesses powers have been gifted to him via me, but you can stop _his_ powers and likeness from coming through."

"I cannot allow-"

"And finally…I wish to fade, the rest of my power going to you. I hold you to your oath, milady."

And so, tears streaming down her cheeks, Artemis chuckled "That's four. Your first was two wishes." Seeing the distress on her friends face, she then added hastily "Do not worry, my brave one. They shall be done."

After making Apollo leave, Achlois then gave birth to a little boy, with silver eyes and a wisp of white hair upon his head.

"Name him…Perseus, `Destruction' as that is what he shall bring to all who wrong the innocent…" were the final words of Achlois, as she dissolved into moonlight that was absorbed by Artemis, making her glow brightly.

"Are you sure about this milady? Do you really want a child of _him_ around, let alone a _male_?!"

Artemis rounded on her. "I don't like it either Zoe, but I gave my oath. Now give me yours. Promise not to hurt the boy. Now!"

"Fine, I swear by the River Styx I will not hurt Perseus. Happy?"

"Very well. Time to meet the family. Let's go Perseus."

**A/N: So, there we go, my first attempt at a Fanfic. Tell me if you like the concept, suggest improvements, but please don't flame. And of course tell me if the idea is worth carrying on! I realize that I'm not as good a writer as Anaklusmos14, but I'll do my best! I realize that Orion is generally perceived as coming before Heracles, and that the method of his death wasn't strictly adhering to mythological canon, I took a bit of creative liberty, just like Rick Riordan. **

**~FallenFury13**


	2. Secret Heritage

**A/N: Well, I'm back again. Updates to this may be a little sporadic considering exams and things, but I'll try my best.**

**Once again, all rights belong to Rick Riordan, not to me (or I'd be rich ;D)**

_**5 years later**_

The young silver haired boy raced through the forest, his pursuer close behind him. Although he was fleeing, he couldn't be happier. The moon hung in the inky sky, a beacon in the night. Howls of wolves shattered the silence, yet the boy was not afraid, instead, the sounds made him feel alive, in his element, his home. The night air rippled slightly, the cool wind almost caressing the boy's skin lovingly.

But the boy was getting worried.

The figure that was trailing him was getting closer, he could tell by the sharp snap of the fallen twigs on the ground and the cursing of the numerous small spaces the boy was able to easily navigate, but the silhouette that was chasing him couldn't. He thought that he had managed to lose them in the tangle of thorns a while back, but clearly not. They were getting closer, closer until finally…

"Gotcha!" a female voice exclaimed. She was large and well-built, but the bulk was anything but fat. Muscles were clearly defined, but toned, not overly bulky.

"Phoebe, I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to put rubber arrows in your quiver, it was an accident, I swear." The boy's eyes, bright gleaming orbs of silver, were wide with innocence, but Phoebe could see the sparkle of mischief that lay within them.

"You swear, do you Perseus?" she said, grinning evilly. "Then you won't mind swearing by the Styx now, will you?"

"Umm..." Perseus floundered, looking for a way out of the situation he was now in, the daughter of Ares smirking at him.

"I knew it!" she shouted triumphantly. "Well, I'm afraid it's now time for your punishment."

"No, please, I won't do it again please!" he pleaded, but it was to no avail.

"Now what can we do… I know, how about we… TICKLE YOU!" Phoebe smirked. Suddenly, she was wrestling with him on the ground, Perseus' laughter uncontrollable as she mercilessly attacked him.

Artemis was watching through the trees, amazed at how Phoebe, a girl the Hunt had found in Sparta, left on the mountainside to die by the general because she was a girl, had warmed so quickly to Perseus, when males were the cause of the problems in her life. In fact, she was amazed by how the Hunt as a whole, all conditioned to hate the male species, had accepted him as one of their own, even calling him brother, especially as they all knew (apart from Perseus himself) who his father was. She felt deeply ashamed that she had not noticed Orion's less than satisfactory behaviour towards her Hunters. Artemis had deemed that as Perseus' guardian, the information on his true parentage was too sensitive for him at this young age, despite his remarkable progress in understanding of situations.

No, it was better to leave him thinking that he was abandoned by a less-than-loving mortal family. She would tell him when the time was right.

His age had something to do with his acceptance, she conceded, after all, most of the Hunt was smitten by the baby when she had carried him into the camp that fateful night. Artemis chucked ruefully, as she remembered her Hunt, her battle-hardened handmaidens were all felled by one look from the bundle she had held. She was happy that he had been accepted as part of the family.

Well.

Almost.

One person refused to acknowledge Perseus as part of the Hunt, and went out of their way to antagonize him and blame him for any problems the camp had. Admittedly, he was often the root cause, his love of pranking encouraged by his sisters. This had led to more than one face-off between her lieutenant and the rest of the Hunt, as they tried to protect their brother from her fearsome wrath. However, Artemis knew that eventually Zoe would snap out of her deep-seated hatred for him. Eventually. She just hoped that it would take only a short time.

Phoebe got up from her torturing of Perseus, leaving her unfortunate victim on the floor clutching his stomach in pain because he had laughed so much. However, his smile was soon replaced be terror as a silver arrow shot past him, leaving only an after image of itself in the air and parting Perseus' silver hair on its flight past.

The archer stepped out from the trees, revealing the imposing figure of Zoe Nightshade, tiara sparkling in her hair (a constant source of amusement for Perseus, as it earned her the nickname `Princess' in his mind, which drove her to dislike the boy even further) and obsidian eyes seething with barely concealed rage.

Phoebe jumped to her feet, filled with fury. "What the Hades are you playing at Zoe?! He's only 5, for Zeus' sake!" Thunder rumbled in the distance.

"What am I doing?! What does this _boy_ think he's doing, endangering the Hunt like that? He knew that you were on patrol tonight, what would have happened if a monster had attacked, and you had only rubber arrows? I will not lose any Hunters because of this _boy's_ idiocy!" Zoe spat back, using _boy_ almost as a cuss word.

"Relax Zoe, I check all my equipment before patrol anyway. Besides, I think Atalanta and Arianne goaded him into it. Now will you lay off him? He's just playing." said Phoebe calmly. She turned to Perseus, who was crying and hiding behind her legs from Zoe. "Come on Perseus, let's go home." she spoke with a tenderness that belied her war-god heritage, gathering the small boy in her arms and trudging back towards camp.

Zoe couldn't believe it. Were her sisters so blind to his dangerous antics that they would keep him and comfort him? He would turn out just like all the other males she had ever encountered, whether they be Heracles, Theseus or indeed the boy's own father, Orion. She snorted with disgust. How Artemis could stand having a living reminder of that vile pig around she did not know. As she turned to go, Artemis stepped in front of her.

"Please Zoe. Give him a chance to prove he is not like the rest. Can you honestly say that you did not cause problems for people when you were 5?" she pleaded.

"I will try Milady." Replied Zoe stiffly. "And that is all I can promise."

_**11 years later**_

Perseus parried the incoming blade destined for his head, then used his other hunting knife to disarm his assailant of one of her weapons, unfortunately, this gave Artemis the perfect opening to sweep his legs out from under him and press her blade against his chin.

"Yield?"

"Ugh…fine, I yield." grumbled Perseus, unhappy about losing to his guardian for the fifth time that day.

Artemis offered her arm, helping the young demigod up. She glanced at him worriedly, knowing that he was losing confidence because all his sisters could defeat him easily. She knew this was partly her fault, as it was her blessing that gave the Hunters their increased speed, grace and agility, which Perseus did not have the benefit of.

Something she intended to change.

Perseus, now 16 years old, had become almost like one of her wolves: Lean, strong and vicious. He was proficient in the wielding of the Hunt's favoured weapons: Spears, hunting knives and of course an expert with a bow and arrow. Still, Artemis felt that as he was not immortal and unblessed, he was vulnerable in a fight. Seeing him struggle against his sisters and against her made her feel terrible, as she knew that his strength surpassed all the Hunters, even Phoebe, and his skill was on par with Zoe's. After a hard days training, the Hunters were looking only slightly dishevelled, whereas Perseus was sweating profusely and gasping for air. The sight of this made up Artemis' mind.

Tonight Perseus would become a member of the Hunt.

Of course, this relied on the Hunters agreeing that he should become a member of the Hunt, but she was not overly concerned about the result. After all, he had grown up in the Hunt, and participated in their games and hunts since he was old enough to draw a bow. No, the result of the vote was in no doubt, tonight was a mere formality. Artemis knew that only one person was going to vote against, and that was Zoe. Whilst she had become slightly more forgiving since he had matured and was able to adhere to the rules more, she was still ready to point the finger of blame in his direction at the first opportunity. Artemis sighed heavily. Why couldn't Zoe see past the fact that he was male? She understood her reasons, she was left broken hearted after the man she believed she could trust tossed her aside like a tool, and she had _seen_ her best friend being attacked and taken advantage of by Orion. Still, the rest of the Hunt had had horrific experiences, but they could still see that Perseus was different.

Caught up in her musings, she quickly looked at the sky and realized that Apollo had long since driven past the horizon, and a full moon stood in its place, casting a pale glow across the forest. Quickly, she gathered her thoughts and strode back to the Hunters camp, seeing the flickering light of the campfire from between the trees.

When she got there, the clamour and laughter around the campfire immediately ceased, her Hunters all casting concerned looks at her. She knew that she had to put their minds at rest, or they would worry for her all through the night.

"My Hunters, I apologize for my lateness, I was merely having a walk." At this, the Hunters visibly relaxed and began talking again. Artemis raised her hand and silence descended once again. "However, seeing as you're all here, I'd like to make a special announcement." Artemis spotted him on the opposite side of the flickering flames, whispering to Phoebe. "Perseus."

That got his attention.

He looked extremely nervous, no doubt worried that she was going to punish him for interrupting her `special announcement'.

"Yes Milady?"

"How would you like to become a full-fledged Hunter, with your sister's approval of course?"

This statement wrought a profound effect on Perseus' face, his eyes becoming wider and brighter than the nights full moon. A chorus of "Well done Perseus!" and "Of course he should become a Hunter!" rose from the girls, only Zoe staying silent, her expression stony.

"Very well in that case, Perseus, come here."

He obeyed, practically skipping over to where Artemis was stood, so joyful was he. She lay her hand upon his head, and spoke a few muttered words. After her blessing was given, moonlight seemed to bend towards the young man and infuse him, giving him a silvery glow like his sisters.

"Is that it?" inquired Perseus. "I always thought there was an oath or something…"

"Well, considering the gender that the Hunt's oath was set out for, I didn't think it completely necessary for you Perseus." smirked Artemis. And now you're bound to me, I can tell you don't swing that way. So, without further ado… let the festivities begin! Welcome our newest member of the Hunt, Perseus! Actually, we should probably have an abbreviation of that name to communicate more effectively during hunts. What do you think?"

"Hmm… I think `Percy' would work quite well Milady." he suggested.

"Very well, from now on you are Percy the Hunter!" Artemis proclaimed "As you are now a true Hunter, I shall present you with your very first weapon – The Lunar Bow!" The bow was very finely crafted, intricate patterns of silver winding across the jet-black bow. The edges were made of Selenian silver, the same material that all the Hunters weapon were made of, honed to a fine edge. Instead of a string, a cord of moonlight was stretched along the length. Percy was puzzled.

"Forgive my Milady but… where are the arrows?"

"That's part of the bows power. You simply reach to where a quiver would be, and an arrow will appear, either blunt or sharp, depending on how you wish the arrow to be. It never runs out of arrows, so don't worry about that." Artemis explained. "Now try holding the grip in two hands and twisting." she commanded.

Percy did so, and the bow split perfectly in two, with him now holding two hunting knives in his hand. Percy looked devastated, thinking that he had broken his weapon. His reaction was so deep it nearly made Artemis regret asking him to do that.

"Percy, don't worry, that's supposed to happen." she laughed, the rest of the Hunt joining in with her, all apart from her lieutenant, who muttered something about `idiotic males'. Artemis glared at her, but Zoe pretended not to notice. Turning back to the distraught Percy, she explained "The string is made of solid light, which can be dissipated at any time, and will re-form when you touch the ends of the hilts together." As she said this, Percy did as she suggested, and the bow immediately came back together. The look of surprise on his face was so comical that Artemis fell about laughing, the rest of the Hunt soon following suit. Even Zoe had a smirk on her face.

"Thank you Artemis!" he beamed, as the first fire arrows were shot into the sky. They were enchanted by Hephaestus to each explode and into different colours, creating a fantastic scene of light. To the Greek mortals, the Mist would warp the noise to that of wolves howling and the light would not be seen at all. Artemis shook her head. It really did astound her, the way the Mist could twist reality.

Then, a low growl resonated throughout the forest, even cutting through the music and laughter of the Hunters. They stood warily, afraid of what the noise was. Two hellish red spotlights appeared from the undergrowth, sending the Hunters (who had left their weapons in their tents) into a blind panic. Only one stood calmly, aiming her arrow between the two fiery orbs. Artemis summoned her hunting knives, sprinting at top speed towards where Zoe was facing down the unknown threat, but she knew she would be too late to stop the monster. Suddenly, the beast leapt from the trees, a huge hulking hellhound, at least the size of a truck, snarling ferociously, its small brain processing the nearest target: Zoe.

She released her arrow, embedding it in its forehead, but it didn't seem to bother the monster at all. Before Zoe could even reach for her quiver, it swiped at her, scythe like claws slicing he very air as her death came closer, closer… Until a figure slammed into her, knocking her to the ground and taking the blow themselves. They flew backwards, crashing into a tree with a sickening crunch, where they crumpled in a motionless heap.

Artemis howled her fury, ripping ruthlessly into the side of the beast with her knives. The monster staggered and finally exploded into fine golden powder after she had driven her blades deep into its black heart. She whipped around to check on Zoe, only to find that she had raced over to her saviour, sobbing:

"You stupid, _stupid_ man! Why?!"

_Man_?

Artemis tore over to the broken figure on the floor, a maternal fire lighting in her heart as she feared the worst.

The moon gave Percy's skin a deathly pale pallor, almost transparent. Zoe had turned away, crying, not wishing to see the injuries that Percy had sustained. Artemis could tell that they were fatal, unless treated quickly. However, even as she bent down to heal him with her godly powers, she noticed that the light from the moon was being absorbed into the wounds, making them glow silver before they began sealing themselves.

"Zoe, look…" breathed Artemis in wonder.

Her lieutenant spun around, her eyes red from tears. She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again when she saw Percy and his miraculous healing wounds.

His eyes opened, the silver seeming to shine more brightly than before.

"Zoe, you're hurt…" was the first thing he said, his eyes alighting on a small cut on her forehead. He touched it, and the light that was flowing through his body suddenly changed direction, pulsing through his finger and onto Zoe's injury, which sealed like Percy's had.

"I'M hurt?!" she exclaimed, brushing his finger away. SLAP!

"OW!" he yelped. "What the Hades was THAT for?" he said, rubbing his now red cheek.

"For making me think you were dead." she replied smugly. "I can't have the only male I respect dying on me now can I?"

"You respect me? Since when?"

"Since you selflessly sacrificed yourself for someone who has done nothing but antagonize you. I'm sorry Percy, I was so sure that all males were the same inside… Can you forgive me?" she pleaded.

"Of course I can, I needed someone to keep me in line anyway." he replied ruefully. "But one thing I don't understand is how I managed to heal you… and myself?"

"Your mother's power…" said Artemis absentmindedly.

"Excuse me? You told me that my parents were mortal. That _I_ was mortal." he accused.

"I'm sorry Percy, I wanted to protect you… Your mother was the goddess Achlois, `She who washes away pain'. She was a minor moon goddess, as well as having power over starlight. I see that her healing powers of moonlight have passed on to you." Artemis explained.

"But why hide my parentage from me?"

"I, as your guardian, deemed the information too troubling for you." She went on to explain the details of that fateful night, however, by the end of the retelling, she almost wished she hadn't. Percy was almost incandescent with rage, the thought of his father and who he was tearing at his morality.

"So I'm… a mistake?" he said quietly.

"No!" gasped Artemis "Never think of yourself like that. You are my son, Perseus, and you would do well to remember it." The words came from her mouth without her bidding, seeming so _right_. Originally, she had been of the same mindset as Zoe, Percy being a living reminder of the man who had almost ruined her, and had caused her best friend's death. Over time however, he had become endearing, and with the guidance of his sisters, the only male she would ever consider close to her.

"Thank you mother." he replied, shocked. "Thank you."

**A/N: So, Percy is now a full Hunter, respected by Zoe and the adopted son of Artemis. Wow, I have no sense of pace in a story. :P For those of you interested in Percy's weapon, Google the "Silver Bow" from Kid Icarus: Uprising, and imagine the blue is black. Hope you liked it, read and review please guys :D!**

**Until next time, **

**~FallenFury13**


	3. Blasts from the Past

**A/N: I apologize for my sluggishness in writing this, had revision to do (exams suck.)**

**EDIT: Minor update to the chronology as it didn't make sense.**

**As always, I don't own the PJO characters or universe, they belong to Rick Riordan.**

_**2000 years later (Present Day):**_

Percy was stood on Olympus, the sheer beauty of it taking his breath away, as it did every winter solstice. The pristine white snow gleamed on the mountainside, contrasting with the many colours and shapes of the palaces around them, which were lit by the torches on the roadside. As he wandered through the colourful market, he noticed that the place had never changed in almost 2000 years of him coming here. The nostalgic aroma of the spices, fruit and other goods on the godly market wafted through the air, reminding Percy of the first time he had visited…

_**Flashback (1995 years back from Present Day)**_

Percy breathed in the smell of the market, having just arrived upon Olympus. Thankfully, Artemis had simply flown the Hunt up to Olympus, for which the Hunters were grateful as it meant that they didn't have to _deal_ with the obnoxious guard at the foot of Mount Olympus, for Apollo's choice of music for 5 minutes in one of Athena's new contraptions: an elevator. Naturally, this would have been quicker, as it ran off of godly energy, but still…_Apollo's music_.

The Hunters had landed in front of a grand silver palace, decorations of bows, deer and (as a warning) antlered bunnies. The roof was curved instead of the traditional triangle, representing the crescent moon. They had all rushed in, eager to make themselves at home. Percy was surprised to discover that he had his own room, with the moon and stars etched on the roof glowing like the real thing. As Artemis had to go for a council meeting, she had given the Hunters specific instructions as to where they were allowed to go and what they were allowed to do. Percy had thought this tad excessive, until Zoe told him what had happened to Apollo's palace when he had tried to flirt with the Hunters, and more specifically her.

Zoe. Now there was someone who perplexed him. She had gone from hating his guts to his closest friend in the course of only 5 years, which, considering her past experiences and the amount she had loathed him and all his gender stood for, was completely incredible. His relationship with her wasn't like the others: He looked upon them as his little sisters (with the exception of Phoebe, who maintained that even if he was older than her in physical age, he was still her little brother) and they saw him as their big brother, who protected them and helped them. However, Zoe was the only one he could confide in when Artemis wasn't around, or went to for advice when he needed help.

Anyway, he was currently making his way towards the palace, through the main market of Olympus, because Artemis had asked him (via Iris-message) to go to the throne room. Needless to say, he was extremely nervous, as Artemis had looked anxious when she had summoned him.

"What if they disintegrate me? Or force me to separate from the Hunt? Or make me mortal again? What do I do?" Percy cried in anguish.

"Relax Percy, they're not going to do any of that. Why would they? They have no reason to, after all." Zoe tried to soothe him.

"I don't know, maybe it's the fact that I'm the only male ever to truly be part of the Hunt? That's _got_ to go against some rules, right?"

"Technically, it was Artemis' rule, and if she decides to break it, then she can do that." Zoe explained. "Now, remember, bow to Zeus and Hera first, lest you wish to be blasted by the master bolt. Then to Lady Artemis, as she is your patron and mother."

"I _know_ Zoe. You've been telling me for the past 10 minutes!" he snapped.

Her shoulders slumped, her black eyes downcast, feeling hurt by Percy's outburst.

"Hey…I'm sorry Zoe, I didn't mean to upset you. I'm just a little apprehensive right now." said Percy, desperate not to upset Zoe. Gods knew what she'd do to him, and if he was to meet an undesirable fate in the council, he did not want Zoe feeling like he had hurt her before he left. She'd felt enough pain to last forever, and he didn't want to contribute to that.

"I know, I am as well, it's why I'm telling you!" she smiled, hearing the sincerity in his apology. "I mean, it would be typical you, going to Olympus for the first time and immediately getting blasted to ashes because you didn't bow!"

They laughed, they sound adding to the joyful atmosphere of Olympus.

Soon they had reached the golden gates to the throne room, statues of Zeus and Hera scowling down on them. Percy was about to knock on the gates when they swung forward on their own accord, leaving him leaning towards the gates with no support. A little push from Zoe, and he went sprawling on the steps in the most undignified way possible. Zoe was bent double, tears streaming down her face as she laughed so hard.

"Promise me…you won't…do that in the council." she said, gasping for air.

Percy got up, blushing from the stares he was attracting from passing minor gods and nature spirits.

"I swear Zoe, one of these days I _will_ get my revenge." he said with mock seriousness, his eyes narrowed but sparkling with playfulness. He stepped forward, as if to chase her, when she suddenly pulled him in for a hug, wrapping her arms around him and then stepping back like she had been struck when she realized what she was doing.

"Please Percy…be safe." she said before sprinting back down the hill, and losing herself in the crowds. He stood there for a moment, trying to comprehend what had just happened.

_Did Zoe Nightshade, the biggest man-hater on Earth, Olympus and in Hades just hug me?_

Shaking this disturbing thought from his head, he turned and walked through the imposing doors of the council chamber.

**~~Line Break~~**

Percy walked into the huge chamber, the air almost buzzing with the power of the Olympians concentrated in one small space. The gods regarded him impassively as he strode into the centre of the room, with the exception of Artemis who smiled at him encouragingly. Percy stopped by the hearth in the middle of the thrones, bowing low to Zeus and Hera.

"My Lord Zeus, Lady Hera…" he uttered from the floor. He then walked over to the giant silver throne that seemed to pulse in the light of the winter's moon, shielding his eyes from Apollo's flashy golden throne. He then bowed low to her as well, as awkward as it felt for him bowing to someone he had known his entire life.

"My patron Artemis." As much as he wanted to, he couldn't call her mother as she had not officially adopted him, and so in the strict formality of Olympus he had to address her by her true title to him.

"Rise Perseus, my champion." said Artemis, her eyes glowing with pride at the boy- no, _man_ before her. He had exceeded her expectations by far, becoming one of the greatest of her Hunters. His close-quarters combat skills were second only to her own, and his archery was only a fraction behind Zoe, a fact that irritated him to no end as Zoe mercilessly used it as teasing ammunition.

Zeus grunted, acknowledging the boy.

"Well, I suppose he shows the proper manners at least. So, Artemis, what did you call him here for?"

At this Percy visibly relaxed, as he knew that Artemis would not willingly put him in danger. Artemis rose from her throne, facing Hera who looked shocked that she was being spoken to. Usually, she just had to calm Zeus down from his temper tantrums.

"Lady Hera, I, Artemis, goddess of the Hunt, the moon, childbirth and maidenhood wish to officially adopt Perseus, the son of Achlois and _Orion_" –she spat out the vile rapists name- "as my true son, my one and only child in front of the Olympian council and with the knowledge of Lady Hera, the goddess of family."

At this announcement, the entire council fell silent, completely shocked. _Artemis_ was adopting a child?! And not only that, the child was a male, as well as the son of a man she hated thoroughly. Even Dionysus awoke from his drunken stupor, if only for a second, at this news. Apollo's eyes narrowed, thinking back to how badly his sister was affected by Orion's betrayal. He didn't say a word, but swore to himself that if ever the child hurt Artemis, even Tartarus could not devise the punishment he would inflict upon him.

Poseidon visibly flinched when he heard his deceased son's name, remembering the price he had paid for not watching him and his true intentions. Apollo had gone to see him that night, and Poseidon wasn't able to walk right for a whole year after that. He regarded the boy, and decided that he would atone for his failings with Orion by favouring Perseus.

"A moment please." said Poseidon. "I wish to give the boy my blessing, if that is acceptable?"

Percy walked from Artemis's throne over to the sea god, unsure as to why the powerful master of the oceans would take an interest in him.

Poseidon stretched out his hand and rested it upon Perseus' forehead, who glowed a watery blue light before it then faded.

"Perseus, know that the water shall never harm you, and that you can breathe in it as easily as the air."

"Thank you my Lord."

Then Aphrodite spoke up, giggling girlishly:

"Well Perseus, I would give you my blessing as well, but it seems like you don't need it." she said eyeing him. Artemis growled low in her throat, warning the idiotic goddess to stay away from him.

"He is in the Hunt, Aphrodite. So kindly keep your claws out of him!"

"Such a shame too, with that body…" she breathed.

Hera was ecstatic, a new member of the family was always welcomed by her (as long as it wasn't a child of Zeus.)

"Very well. I, Hera, in my capacity of the goddess of family, hereby declare that Perseus is now the true son of Artemis!"

_**Present Day**_

Percy was broken out of his reminiscing by the squeal of a group of female demigods. They all wore a necklace with beads on, signalling where they were from.

_Campers. _He thought with disdain. _Wonderful._

The last time the Hunters had been to Camp Half-Blood was around 8 years ago, when a group of boys decided to try and seduce the Hunters, and when that failed, attack them. The end result had been 5 broken bones, 10 hospitalized campers and 3 burned down cabins. Needless to say, the Hunt did not exactly get on with campers.

Percy started towards the now familiar council chamber, knowing that if he was even a second late, Zoe, Phoebe and Artemis would all have a go at him. Why, he didn't know, it's not as if anything important happened at the meetings anyway.

As he neared the palace, he saw a figure dart out of the palace, running for its life, only narrowly avoiding him on their way past, a cap obscuring their face, a bead necklace around their neck. He would have pursued them, but was more anxious about avoiding the wrath of the girls. Seeing the campers reminded him of the time he had last gone near there, only 4 years ago (Artemis went out of her way to avoid it) when the Hunt had been charged with protecting a certain half-blood…Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus.

_**Flashback (4 years ago)**_

The girl brandished her shield, trying to keep the monsters at bay with its power of terror. She had spiky black hair, electric blue eyes and wore a black leather jacket, heavy makeup around her eyes. It may have looked imposing to some, but to Percy it looked like she'd been punched in both eyes.

A blonde boy raced up to her, bronze blade drawn, trying to help, but Percy could see that he was only a hindrance, his sword skills sorely lacking to be of any effect.

"Luke, get back!" called the girl.

"No Thalia, I won't! We're supposed to stick together, right?"

"Yeah, but go help Annabeth and Grover, they need you more!"

The Hunt had been shadowing the group for weeks now, at Zeus' request to keep his daughter safe from Hades. Most of the Hunt felt that he had brought the situation on himself, breaking the oath like that, but they helped because they viewed Thalia as a brave maiden. They hadn't yet revealed themselves, as Artemis had said that she would only risk her Hunters if the group were overwhelmed. Although there were only a few monsters, the demigods were in trouble as Luke, the son of Hermes was useless with a blade, the seven-year old daughter of Athena was, well, seven, and not much use in a fight, and their _protector_ was an idiotic satyr that fainted at the first sign of danger, which explained why he was currently passed out moaning on the floor.

Artemis, seeing their plight, sounded the hunting horn, but held all but one of them of them back. She wanted to see how Percy would do under pressure and outnumbered, as usually he was with the Hunt and so could rely on his sisters to attack with him.

Percy raced forward, out of the cover of the trees, touching the wolf pendant that hung around his neck. His bow sprang to life before him, and he immediately nocked an arrow. The moonlight around him was sucked into the tip of the arrow, as if it had been collected by a vacuum cleaner. Percy loosed the arrow at the group of monsters threatening Annabeth and Grover. As the arrow made contact with the first_ dracaenae_, the pent up moonlight suddenly exploded, disintegrating the whole group. It also blew Luke back, who had been running to help them, straight into a tree, knocking him out cold.

Twisting his bow, Percy changed his weapon into its hunting knife form. He sprinted towards Thalia, who was about to be skewered on a spear. He managed to deflect the weapon sideways, but only into his shoulder. Disregarding his injury that was soon healed by the pale glow of the moon, he ripped the spear out with a roar and waded into the group of monsters, easily sidestepping the dragon women's spears and nets, slicing straight through their armour.

Thalia could only stand and watch in amazement as the boy saved her from certain death, and then proceeded to annihilate the monsters. She noticed his white hair flowing in the wind, his graceful movements almost seeming to dance around his opponents and (whilst blushing furiously) the way his tight-fitting t-shirt hugged his muscular form.

Percy was oblivious to this as he was too focused on the task at hand, but Thalia's blush wasn't unnoticed by Zoe. An ugly feeling built in her chest, which seethed when, after the last monster had been destroyed, the girl went and _hugged_ him! Zoe put this down to protectiveness over her friend, as well as disgust at the unfaithfulness of the girl.

After watching them for weeks, Zoe knew that the child of Hermes was hopelessly in love with Thalia, and that Thalia had a small crush on him as well, hence she dressed the way that she knew Luke liked, punk style. Thalia was simply too oblivious to his affections for her, and so nothing had happened between the two. However, any romantic feeling for Luke seemed to be lost in that hug, and redirected to Percy, as she held on for a bit too long and was standing a bit too close to him after he had broken the embrace.

Artemis was also irritated by the girl, and the entire Hunt felt the same way. Thalia's ease of switching her attentions from Luke, whom she had known for years, to Percy, who she had just met, was almost like something a male would do.

Just as Thalia embraced Percy, Luke woke up. He spotted them, and he trembled in rage. How _dare_ this unknown boy steal away Thalia? They were meant to be together, he knew it.

Then the Hunters emerged from the trees, and Annabeth ran to them, impressed by their bows and wolves. He heard one of them, a young 13 year old girl with auburn hair introduce herself as Artemis, goddess of the Hunt, and the unknown boy as her son, and Luke's rage continued. It was just like the voice in his dream had told him, the Olympians had taken what was most precious to him away, his love in Thalia and his new family in Annabeth. Luke resolved there and then to become the best, so that Thalia and his father would have no choice but to notice him.

The Hunt continued with their charges to Camp Half-Blood over the next few days. Thalia had begun dressing in a Hunters uniform, and let her hair down, much to Luke and Zoe's ire. It was obvious she was dressing this way for Percy, as she had seen how he interacted with the Hunters and wished to be part of it. She had become much more clingy towards him, as Luke had grown colder and Annabeth spent her time with Phoebe, who wouldn't let Thalia anywhere near her.

On the day before they arrived at camp, Thalia and Percy (who was unaware of Thalia's affections) were sparring. She jabbed at him with her spear, having lost her shield early on in the match, but Percy sidestepped and sliced through the wooden shaft of her spear. Horrified at breaking her weapon, he had gone and enchanted one of the Hunters spears, which was fully Selenian silver, into a necklace.

Zoe had gone to find Percy to go off on a hunt with her and Phoebe, when she came upon him putting the necklace on Thalia. A gasp escaped her lips and she turned and ran into the forest, tears streaming down her cheeks as she thought that Percy had found love. He would be forced to leave the Hunt, and, after nearly 2000 years with him, Zoe didn't know what she would do without him, and she knew that Lady Artemis would be hurt.

Zoe heard the steps of someone behind her, and immediately raised her bow against them. When she saw that it was Percy, she didn't lower her weapon.

"Zoe, what's wrong?" he asked.

"What's wrong? What's wrong is that you're shamelessly flirting with the girl, that's what!"

"Wait what? I'm not flirting with anyone, who do you mean?" Percy was puzzled.

"Thalia!" She said in an outraged hiss. "You gave her a freaking necklace, for Zeus' sake!"

"Oh the weapon? That was because I broke her old spear, so I gave her a replacement." he said easily.

"You mean to say…that you don't love her?" said Zoe hopefully.  
"What? No, I barely know her! Why would I love her?"

"Um…no reason." Zoe felt elated as he said that he didn't love the daughter of Zeus. Then she was puzzled by the fact that she was glad of this. She put it down to not wanting her friend to leave her, as people like Heracles have done in the past.

"Right…so why were you crying again?" enquired Percy, completely bewildered by Zoe's strange behaviour.

"I have no idea." She said as she turned and hugged him, burying her head in his chest. Percy was shocked at the sudden gesture, but didn't move to break the embrace as he had done with Thalia. Unbeknownst to him, said daughter of Zeus noticed this and marked Zoe as a rival for Percy's attentions.

The next day, the Hunters had taken the group of young demigods to the foot of Half-Blood Hill, in sight of the camp, where they said their goodbyes. Most of them were to Annabeth, as she was the only one of the group who the Hunters had no problem with, but once again Thalia embraced Percy for a bit too long for Zoe's liking as Artemis teleported the Hunters away, for she sensed no monsters around.

However, Hades had been watching, and shadow-travelled a huge group headed by the Furies to attack the young demigods when the Hunt had left. To save her friends, Percy learnt later on, Thalia had sacrificed herself, but Zeus had turned her into a tree to protect the borders of the camp.

_**Present Day**_

Percy met with the Hunters just outside the council chambers, when a roar that shook all of Olympus came forth.

"MY MASTER BOLT IS MISSING!"

**A/N: Once again, sorry about the lateness in writing this (over 2 weeks :O) but exams mean revision mean less time to write.**

**For those asking about Percy's father figure, I decided to leave that out as he didn't have one in canon, also, not having a stern figure there means he's more reckless and likely to do something like diving in and taking a spear for someone he doesn't know.**

**Please Read and Review guys :D**

**~FallenFury13**


	4. Dammit Perseus

**A/N: Hey guys! Thanks to the 100+ followers, I'm flattered you thought this story worthy of a follow :D**

**As always, PJO characters and universe are not mine, 'cause I'm not rich (unfortunately)**

To say that Zeus was furious was the understatement of Western civilisation. He paced around the hearth, Olympus shaking with his every step. Normally, Percy and the Hunters would have sneered at the temper tantrum, but when said tantrum is being thrown by the King of the Gods, it tends to be a little bit more serious than most. The campers were clustered at the end of the hall, talking amongst themselves whilst Chiron, bless the centaur, was trying in vain to keep them quiet, lest he draw the wrath of Zeus. Percy glared at them. Couldn't the fools _see_ the importance of this meeting? Well, he amended, one would. Percy was certain that the camper he had seen not 5 minutes before, running from the palace, was the thief.

Which begged the question: Why? What was to be gained from stealing the master bolt? Surely someone wanted to spread chaos and disunity among the gods. Percy's first suspect was Eris, and children of hers, but he was sure that even 2000 years after the whole "Apple of the Fairest turned bloodiest war in history" thing, she wouldn't try something on this grand a scale.

Hermes? The runner had been fast enough to be his scion, and thieving was just in their nature. But Hermes would have felt the theft, all connected to him who stole he was immediately aware of, and Percy knew that Hermes would never deceive his father.

Suddenly, the sky over the council chamber turned black as thunderclouds gathered.

"POSEIDON!" Yelled Zeus. "I never would have thought you would have the audacity to do THIS!"

All the gods looked at each other, disbelieving that Zeus' paranoia would go this far. All but one, Percy noted. Hades, the slippery god of the Underworld, looked completely relaxed, not batting an eyelid when Zeus accused his brother of the theft, which was suspicious in itself. What piqued Perseus' interest was the lack of the Helm of Darkness, his own symbol of power. He never let that thing out of his sight. Interesting.

"Brother." said Poseidon calmly. "You know that I cannot take your property directly. To do so would be a violation of the Ancient Laws."

Zeus turned away, scowling, the thoughts in his brain scrambled. Poseidon, must be the cause, he decided but how? He must have convinced a mortal hero to do it. But who would have connection with the sea god? His gaze turned to Perseus, who flinched when his eyes made contact. Surely that was confirmation? He was about to make the accusation, and then stopped. By doing so, he would ostracize his favourite daughter by condemning her son to Tartarus. Besides, the boy had been in the market at the time. No, it must be another…

Percy felt the penetrating glare of Zeus upon him, and he flinched with fear. He was the only Hunter who had left Artemis' temple that day, as well as the only demigod with any kind of connection to the ocean lord. Did Zeus suspect him?

To clear his name, he stepped forth and addressed the god of the sky.

"My lord Zeus, I believe I may have seen the thief only moments ago. I could not see their face, nor tell anything about them, other than the fact they wore a Camp Half-Blood necklace." He reported whilst bowing low.

Zeus gave him an incredulous look, before his fury returned.

"Did you not" Zeus began "possibly think – that it might have been a good idea – TO CHASE AFTER THEM?"

Percy seemed to shrink a couple of feet, and the Hunters moved back from him, out of range of any godly missiles.

"N-n-no sir, I didn't want to be late for the meeting?" The boy stammered out, the statement turned into a question by hope and desperation.

"Well then." Just then, Zeus realized that the campers were still around, loudly cursing the figure obscured by his hood that was blaming one of their own for the crime. "Chiron, could you remove your campers? In case you haven't noticed, I'M NOT IN THE MOOD FOR INTERRUPTIONS!"

The campers scattered, and soon the hall was quiet again. Chiron clopped back in, looking tired. He sent a pleading gaze to Artemis, who immediately sent the Hunters to keep order among the campers. Percy and Zoe rose with them, but were dissuaded by the scorching look Zeus directed at them.

"Now, without further interruptions" said Zeus with deadly calm "You mean to say that you thought the wrath of your mother was more important than a highly suspicious individual who you saw running from the palace?"

Percy thought he'd try some humour. The honorary god of theatre would appreciate that…right?

"To be fair, sir, you've never had to put up with one of her lectures."

At this, Zoe squeezed her eyes shut as she waited for her best friend in 2000 years to be vaporised by his mother. What she and Perseus (who had lowered his head) didn't see was the telepathic conversation that the enraged gods were having. Artemis smirked, and Zeus prepared the search parties.

"Athena, Ares, Apollo and Artemis, I order you to look for any sign of the thief, and to catch them. Travel across America, the world if you must, but bring them to heel! Meanwhile, Hephaestus and I will tighten security on Olympus. Now, if that is all…oh wait, no it isn't." Zeus said smiling cruelly. "Perseus, as you brought us this _invaluable_ information, and you were _so_ diligent in trying to stop the thief" the sarcasm dripped from his every word "I have decided that you shall pose as a camper, and will live among them to discover the identity of the thief. Any objections?"

Percy was horrified. An indefinite amount of time not only away from hunting and his family, but with _them_? Was he serious? Sadly, Percy knew he was, and also knew that any attempt to argue may as well sign his own death warrant.

"May I ask sir, if I am allowed a companion?" He enquired timidly.

"Very well. But, you shall not be claimed by Artemis until after at least 3 days. Understood? Now who shall your lucky friend be?"

Percy turned to Zoe, his eyes pleading. She sighed with resignation.

"Sometimes I really hate you, you know?"

_**2 days later**_

Percy and Zoe staggered through the trees, their clothes ripped by running through the wilderness. To make the pairs arrival at camp not seem suspicious, Zeus had allowed Hades to set a monster on their trail, which the death god seemed to find great joy in. Naturally, Hades couldn't have chosen a simple monster, no, he had to choose the Minotaur himself, who ripped out arrows like they were bee stings. Percy had even used his power over moonlight to detonate explosions of celestial light, but they only served to disorientate the beast for a few seconds.

Thankfully, his pursuit of them ended when he suddenly changed direction, heading for the road leading to the camp. Whilst this probably meant that it had found another half-blood to attack, Percy was only glad that it had left them alone. As soon as the two were alone again, Percy turned to express their good fortune, only to receive a literal slap in the face from his less than willing companion.

"OW!" he yelped "What the Hades was that for?"

"For making me come on this _trip_ with you." she replied tartly. "Campers are bad enough, but being chased by the Minotaur through the woods? Not my idea of fun, Percy."

"Hey, it wasn't my idea…"

Bad choice of words.

"Not your idea? No, you just _had_ to let the person sprinting away from the palace go, didn't you? On top of that, you then went and insulted Artemis! You may not have had the idea, but you certainly deserve it! I don't know why I came with you!" she ranted.

He was about to reply when he noticed the Minotaur's bellow echo across the valley, and then saw the beast itself. He realized, with relief, that they weren't his prey, instead he was chasing a car across the road.

Lightning blasted the vehicle, causing it to flip and crash. Percy didn't see how anyone could survive that, but then three figures climbed from the wreckage. One appeared to be passed out, and even from where they were the pair could hear his moaning's of food.

Zoe looked at him. "Wasn't that the satyr from around the time of Annabeth?" she asked, carefully avoiding the name Thalia. She still couldn't think about her without getting irritated.

"Yeah. What was his name? Grovel? Grub? Anyway, we should probably help."

"And how exactly do you expect to do that? Our arrows haven't been able to do anything."

"Well, we both have our hunting knives. We could try to stab a vital organ…"

"What!" she shrieked. "You want to get in that close? A typical, non-thought through male plan if ever there was one."

"You got any better ideas? Besides, we don't have much choice. Look."

In the time that the two had spent conversing, the boy (who they were sure was a demigod) managed to attract the beasts attention from the unconscious satyr, however, it then targeted him and who they assumed was his mother. She managed to avoid him the first time, but as Zoe and Percy looked around, she dissolved into golden light.

"MOM!" the boy screamed, clearly thinking she was dead. He charged the Minotaur, who seemed to be laughing at the puny demigod's challenge. The boy ran on, and would have been hit by the monster had a black and silver blur not knocked him to the ground. All the demigod saw was his rescuers bright silver eyes glowing in his black hoodie, before the figure was slammed aside by the beast, the snap of bones breaking sharp in the air. The boy rapidly began losing consciousness, but in his fading vision he saw another sliver-clad figure throw two knives into the Minotaur's throat, when it exploded in a burst of dust.

The last thing he heard before he blacked out was a feminine voice shouting:

"Dammit Perseus!"

_**4 days later**_

Percy awoke in what he recognized as the hospital wing in Camp Half-Blood. He should know what it looked like, Chiron had sent him here enough times over the years to apologize to those he and the rest of the Hunt had sent there. His next thought was Zoe. Who protected her from the monster? If anything had happened to her, it would be Percy's fault, and he knew it. He sat up so fast that the figure leaning down over him had no chance to react, and they ended up colliding heads. Percy fell back on the sheets groaning with his new headache.

"OW, you idiotic male!" shouted a voice, and despite his pain, Percy felt elated. Zoe had escaped! "First you rush in there, with no regard for your own safety, and end up breaking three ribs. Then you leave me to deal with the Minotaur! Have you no sense whatsoever?" she continued ranting.

"Good to see you too Zoe." He croaked. "Is he alright? And is it dead?"

"Yes, the _boy_ is fine thanks to you, he was released yesterday, and of course it's dead! What do you take me for?" Suddenly her face changed from enraged to caring. "I-I'm glad you're alright." She said softly, before crushing him in a hug.

"OUCH!" he yelled. She pulled back quickly, horrified that she had made his injuries worse. When she saw that he was just clutching his now only bruised ribs, and no new breaks had occurred, she rolled her eyes.

"Crybaby. Drink the rest of your nectar, that should heal you up. After that, we've got a thief to find." She commanded.

"Yes ma'am." He replied cheekily, before sobering up when she shot him a glare.

"Let's find this idiot."

The pair made their way over to Chiron, whom they knew would have sorted accommodation for them both. To their horror, however, they were not only banned from going into Cabin 8, where they would usually reside, but also from the Big House.

"I'm sorry, you two, but it's Zeus' orders. Cabin 8 is off-limits until Artemis claims you, and the Big House is only for distinguished guests. As you're supposed to be acting normal half-bloods, it would be best for you to integrate." Chiron explained, getting more and more nervous as Zoe became ever more furious.

"You mean-" she began, and Chiron began to pale "That I, a Hunter, not only have to share a room with _boys_, but also _boy campers_?!"

"Well, my dear, if you were in Cabin 8 you would have to share with Perseus here…"

"He has been raised in the Hunt, Artemis' own child! How dare you compare him to those idiots!" she hissed furiously.

Before the situation could escalate, Annabeth came running through into the room. She had gotten taller since Percy had last seen her, but then again, that was 4 or 5 years ago. She immediately addressed Chiron:

"Chiron! Percy and Clarisse had a…disagreement. The toilets are in a bit of a mess. You might want to send a cleaning harpy to them…"

She trailed off when she saw who Chiron was talking to. Seeing Zoe, she instantly ran up to her, crushing the older girl in her arms. She was about to do the same to Percy, but hesitated until she saw Zoe give a small nod. Percy was then crushed in the same vice-like embrace, further bruising his damaged ribs. He grimaced in pain, but hugged the overexcited girl back.

"Percy! Zoe! Why are you guys here? How long for? Where are the rest of the Hunt? What-" The torrent of questions piled forth, until Chiron wearily raised a hand to stop the flood.

"Annabeth, my dear, come here for a second." Chiron beckoned her towards him, and they quickly had a hushed discussion, in which Chiron informed Annabeth of the will of the gods, and how the two Hunters were to be kept anonymous until Zeus felt otherwise. During this, Zoe and Percy simply stood side by side, waiting for the conversation to finish.

Soon, Annabeth had run off to find Luke, who was the only other in the camp that would recognize the pair, to explain the situation.

"As I was saying" Chiron began again "The two of you are unclaimed demigods as of now, and so will have to be roomed in the Hermes cabin. Luke is making arrangements for Zoe, so that his brothers don't attempt any misdeeds around you, and end up losing parts of their anatomy."

Zoe smirked at this, whilst Percy gulped. Whilst one can tell a spawn of Hermes till they're blue in the face to stop stealing, it's not ever going to work. Percy only wished that Zoe would keep maiming to a minimum whilst they were being incognito. The last thing they needed was a bloodbath, and another ticked-off immortal.

"Well, off you go then children."

To put it bluntly, Camp was as interesting as watching paint dry when compared to the Hunt. Sure, there was a volcanic climbing wall, amongst other attractions, but nothing quite beats the forest air rushing past you as you run down prey with your bow and arrows. At least their cabin was welcoming (or resigned) to them. Well, thought Percy darkly, except for one. Luke Castellan seemed to have it out for Percy, despite being given no provocation that he could think of. Still, at least the boy had improved his swordsmanship since last time.

Luke was burning with resentment at the boy he knew to be a Hunter. Little did anyone know, but the reason there was such a marked improvement in his skills was to match and surpass the silver haired demigod. The reason? So that when Thalia came back, as his master had promised, HE could be the one to swoop in and show off his talents. After all, Thalia was supposed to be his, and to do so he had to show he was better than the man who had stolen her from him.

He finally got a crack at him on his third day. He, the best swordsman at camp for over 100 years would now show the Hunter for the fraud he was, and that he was superior in every way. As people began to gather for the showdown, he noticed a betting pool going on, and was proud to see that none had bet on Perseus. That was, until, the regal looking Hunter swept across, looked at the bets, and laughed until she cried. Zoe then placed a bet of 30 drachma on Percy, the clear underdog to the fight, drawing gasps from all present at the audacity of the new girl.

The laughter incensed Luke. How dare she not regard him as a real threat? Blinded by rage, he yelled to her: "We'll see who's laughing when your boyfriend's bleeding on the ground, bitch!"

Big mistake.

Not only had Luke insulted Zoe by calling her a bitch, but he had also insulted the very thing she stood for as a member of the Hunt. Which was a mistake because the Hunters looked out for one another, and there was no way Percy would let this go. He was originally intending on letting the boy gain some ground, but no longer. His body literally glowed with lunar light as his rage overcame him.

When the fight began, people were shocked by the bright glare coming from the new kid. They were in pretty much the same positions as the fight ended, because it had taken Percy 10 seconds flat to disarm, wound and drop Luke to the floor wheezing.

As Zoe went over to calm the still enraged Percy, Luke's thoughts were overcome with the desire for vengeance, egged on by the Titan Lord himself.

Tonight was Capture the Flag, a game where accidents were commonplace.

Tonight was Luke's revenge.

**A/N: Ok, I have no excuse. I've been really lazy now that I'm on my summer hols, and just haven't had the inspiration to sit down and write. So, I'm really, really sorry to you guys for that. As I say, I have no excuses. However, if any of you are Harry Potter fans, then keep a look out because I'm in the middle of planning a Fanfic for that, should come out before the end of the week. Depends on if I can get my lazy ass in gear for it to come out in the next couple of days, we'll see. I hope it doesn't fall too heavily into the archetypes that seem to define HP Fanfics, but I can't promise anything.**

**But anyway, please read and review, hope you enjoyed this (once again) small chapter and I hope you guys can forgive me :( **

**~FallenFury13**


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